Around the State

| 3/1/1998

AMELIA ISLAND --

The resort is completing a $55 million expansion including 25,000 square feet of conference space and the Amelia Inn & Beach Club, a 250-room oceanfront hotel to open next month, bringing total hotel rooms and condo-style villas to more than 1,000.

JACKSONVILLE -- Physician Sales & Service (Nasdaq-PSSI) bought Southwest Radiograpics of Albuquerque, N.M. The $25 million medical imaging distributor will be part of PSS's imaging business. In other areas, PSS expects to complete its $685 million stock-trade purchase of Jackson, Miss.-based Gulf South Medical Supply this April to become the largest medical supply company in the U.S. PSS plans to change its name to PSS World Medical. Adding Gulf South, a supplier to nursing homes and long-term care facilities, will bring PSS annual revenues up to $1.3 billion.

The Haskell Company, a commercial design and construction firm, plans to expand its Miami and Orlando offices, and open a Tampa branch this fall.

St. Joe Corp. (NYSE-SJP), planning to add a large portfolio of golf courses in the next five years, purchased Jacksonville-based Riverside Golf Management Co., a developer of nine Southeastern golf courses. Riverside founder and ABC golf analyst Steve Melnyk will continue to oversee the golf holdings, including stand-alone golfcourses and residential golf communities. In a separate venture, St. Joe and the National Football League (NFL) agreed to build and operate entertainment centers nationwide. The centers, tentatively called NFLX, will offer interactive NFL entertainment that immerses fans in the game-day experience, NFL-themed dining and retail sales.

GAINESVILLE -- Nordstrom Inc. is buying 24.5 acres at the Airport Industrial Park. The Seattle-based clothier intends to build a $12.5 million, 180,000-square-foot distribution center to supply Nordstrom's new stores in south Florida and Atlanta. The center is expected to open in February 2000 and employ 100.

OCALA -- Dayco Products plans to add 250 new workers in the next 18 months. The manufacturer of rubber hoses for cars just completed a $9 million, 35,000-square-foot expansion of its facility.

ABB Meters is constructing a $3.5 million, 70,000-square-foot facility to manufacture and assemble water meters for municipal systems. The company, which had been leasing a plant, plans to add 155 employees.